Oral Answers to Questions

Dan Aldridge Excerpts

Wednesday 27th November 2024 Commons Chamber

[Chris Murray (Edinburgh East and Musselburgh) (Lab)]

1. What steps he is taking to help support innovation in Northern Ireland.

[Dan Aldridge (Weston-super-Mare) (Lab)]

3. What steps he is taking to help support innovation in Northern Ireland.

[Matt Western (Warwick and Leamington) (Lab)]

14. What steps he is taking to help support innovation in Northern Ireland.

--- Later in debate ---

[Dan Aldridge]

Free trade across the UK single market, from major tech hubs in London, Edinburgh and Cardiff to smaller towns such as Weston-super-Mare, is vital to supporting innovation in Northern Ireland and across the UK. What steps is the Minister taking to streamline Northern Ireland’s ability to trade with all corners of the UK, and vice versa?

[Fleur Anderson]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising that point and the connection to Weston-super-Mare. There is a lot of work that we can do to support innovation across the whole country, including through the business innovation grant that I mentioned, which is especially for small and medium-sized enterprises. It offers grants of up to £20,000 to enable those enterprises to come into the market.